Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) Stake Boosted by BNP Paribas Financial Markets

BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) by 28.9% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 347,199 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 77,772 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in Mueller Water Products were worth $7,534,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in Mueller Water Products in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in Mueller Water Products during the second quarter valued at approximately $72,000. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in Mueller Water Products by 44.2% in the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 4,757 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $83,000 after acquiring an additional 1,457 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Mueller Water Products by 434.6% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,892 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $106,000 after acquiring an additional 3,977 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of Mueller Water Products by 341.0% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 5,632 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $101,000 after purchasing an additional 4,355 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.68% of the company’s stock.

Mueller Water Products Price Performance

NYSE MWA opened at $25.59 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.00 billion, a PE ratio of 35.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.34. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $23.12 and a 200 day simple moving average of $20.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a current ratio of 3.33. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a twelve month low of $13.40 and a twelve month high of $26.28.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.22. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 19.38% and a net margin of 8.82%. The company had revenue of $348.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $324.80 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.19 earnings per share. Mueller Water Products’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 1.17 EPS for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a dividend of $0.067 per share. This is an increase from Mueller Water Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $0.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.05%. Mueller Water Products’s payout ratio is presently 36.99%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Todd P. Helms sold 3,556 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.02, for a total value of $88,971.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,683 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $967,848.66. This trade represents a 8.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lydia W. Thomas sold 10,791 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.40, for a total transaction of $263,300.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 136,405 shares in the company, valued at $3,328,282. This trade represents a 7.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MWA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Mueller Water Products from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $27.00 price target (up previously from $26.00) on shares of Mueller Water Products in a research note on Friday, November 8th. TD Cowen downgraded Mueller Water Products from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $19.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Mueller Water Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $22.20.

Mueller Water Products Company Profile

Mueller Water Products, Inc manufactures and markets products and services for the transmission, distribution, and measurement of water used by municipalities, and the residential and non-residential construction industries in the United States, Israel, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Water Flow Solutions and Water Management Solutions.